Police won't release name of man who jumped from parking garage in Portsmouth

Thursday

Dec 27, 2007 at 3:15 AMDec 27, 2007 at 5:50 AM

By CHARLES McMAHON

PORTSMOUTH — Following the Christmas Day suicide of a 22-year-old local man who police believe jumped from the High Hanover parking garage to the street below, officials have decided not to release any public information regarding the victim.

Authorities, however, say the tragedy is indicative of a growing problem in the Seacoast and elsewhere — especially around the holiday season.

Police Capt. Janet Champlin on Wednesday said this most recent death is the third suicide since Thanksgiving.

"We tend to experience more suicides this time of year," said Champlin. "Both in the winter months and especially during holidays."

Champlin said holidays are traditionally a hard time of year for some people and that police investigate each and every incident of unattended death as if a crime occurred until they determine otherwise.

She also said the public is not always made aware of local suicides because they often occur in someone's home and are out of the public eye.

"We investigate many deaths that turn out to be suicides," said Champlin. "As a department routine, we do not release any of their identities."

The most recent such death occurred on Christmas morning. City police received reports of an unidentified man lying unconscious and bleeding from the head in the middle of Fleet Street.

Champlin said police were initially notified by two passers-by who found the man and immediately called 911. She said there was very little pedestrian traffic and not many witnesses to the tragic event.

Police later determined the young man fell from the top level of the High Hanover parking garage, which overlooks Fleet Street.

"It is very tragic and especially for a family on Christmas," she said. "It's also hard on our officers as well as passers-by, but especially for the family."

The victim was pronounced dead by a medical examiner at 1:15 p.m. at Portsmouth Regional Hospital and the death was subsequently ruled a suicide. No foul play or crime is believed to have taken place, Champlin said.

Police officials would not comment on whether there was a note left behind by the victim.

The last known local suicide occurred on Nov. 11, when officers responded to Sagamore Court Apartments for a report that a man had shot himself with a. 380-caliber semi-automatic pistol outside the doorway of one of the apartment buildings.

Police were on scene within a minute of the shot and secured the area for an ambulance. The 65-year-old man was determined to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head and was only identified as not being a local resident.